this show is from the day I was born. thanks to all the fam for making this possible.

A very hot 1st set!

I love the into from the 1st night run at the Ark to the intro to this show. Pretty much says it all about THE and my whole Grateful Dead experience. Any one know why they only played the Ark once while they played the Boston Tea Party many times in '69?

Thanks again Charlie-- this one blows my socks off. Wonderful fidelity, Wonderful show -- A desert island combo.
I'm guessing that this was a really, really small audience--and my experience is that when they had a small audience, they smoked Don't miss this one.

The third performance from The Ark is the most consistent. The set lists are inventive. Friend Of Mine and The Eleven > Caution (Do Not Stop On Tracks) are excellently done. The slide guitar work in Hard To Handle is noteworthy.
The Eleven and Caution contributed mightily to the '69 oeuvre along with Alligator and his tail.
I'm in agreement how nice theaters like the Capitol (Port Chester), Fillmore, L'Olympia, Stanley, Palace, Fox (St. Louis), Boston Music Hall etc. figured in positively.

Some of the set list is odd, but the jams are the best of the bizarre and the recording is great. OMG this is one of the sickest Dark Stars. What do I mean by sick? Like, so good that the human nervous system can't withstand the mixolydian sublimity and I'm rendered incapable of voluntary motor activity, so I just sit here and drool and go "Jerrrrrreeeeeeee..."

It's all over now baby blue... between 1966 and 1969 the Dead tapped into something that cant be put into words. Just listen.

Of course this is great, and I "get" it even thought I did not see my first show until 1980. The problem with cutting the next 25 years out is that you discount all the great songwriting that occurred after Anthem and Aox. Workingman's, Beauty, the songs introduced AFTER Keith joined the band on and on and on.... That cannot be what you mean?

If you are not a fan of this version you are not alive!!!

The third show of this great Ark run is another blast of ragged, raw, primal Dead. The He Was A Friend Of Mine that starts off is one of the high points with some stellar guitar work by both Jerry and Bobby. Just loved the It's a Sin sandwich with St. Stephen bread. The It's a Sin itself is as excellent a blues as you will ever hear the Dead perform. Following a thunderous Caution, the feedback is just stunning.

rschwz28, i defiantly sympathize with you. sometimes i listen to shows like this and wonder if i really need to hear any of my 80's Dead collection again...
i actually just got this one not that long ago. my god, how could i have passed it up all this time!? despite some sloppiness in the usual places (like the band playing extraordinarily unrehearsed versions of Hard to Handle in this era) it is MORE than compensated for by otherworldly jamming on almost every cut.
there are too many highlights to wax idiotic about right now, but one thing i have to say is that the Jam>Eleven>Gator>Caution is exquisite, one the best Gator jams i've heard besides those of Feb. 69...the jamming coming out of the 11 and up until the 'bid you goodnight' theme is among the most memorable and fast paced i've ever heard from good 'ol JJG.
btw this is the best source to DL from etree, it has the cleaned up patch w/o the static during DS>SS.

When I read on this site how some "Deadheads" think some year from the 70's or 80's was the band's best year, I just want to sit them down with a show like this and say "don't you get it?"
Anthem and Aoxomoxoa live? Has to be five out of five stars!
Charlie Miller: Don't you think tracks 7, 8, 9 & 10 should be ONE track called "The Other One" or "That's It For The Other One"? When it gets broken down too much, it makes it impossible to hear it the way they played it. None of the devices I use (car, computer) provides a seamless or instantaneous transfer from one track to the next. Anybody agree with me?

...of transitive nightfall and box back nitties. An outstanding show, even compared to the rest of this amazing run.

This show gives me the feeling that these guys could show up and plug in, and the jams would just seep and flow out of them. Remarkable. A great show from an essential run. Bury me with speakers in my coffin.

This is probably one of the best setlists ever from my point of view. Dark Star, Cryptical, Morning Dew, Lovelight, Hard to Handle, Caution, Bid You Goodnight, Alligator...and more!!!
A very rare five out of five for me!

I am a darkstar junkie. I love it. ahaha. Whole show sounds amazing thank you boys!

there are so many good shows from this spring tour it's hard to elevate one over the other. check out the "friend of mine", best one I've heard and a great intro to a fine night of rock and roll and jamming to cap off the three night Ark run. Dark Star is great and the jam out of Alligator into the eleven is unique and very good. thank you charlie miller for your hard work on these shows, sounds good.

Listen to the music play...
If you are confused as to which of the several sources of the show to have then this is the best version of this show available, IMHO. The cut between SS and It's A Sin has been patched with shn# 98793 and has been pitch corrected to match.
Monster show from head to toe, a marathon of 1969 goodies: Dark Star, St. Stephen, TIFTOO, H2H, Dew, Rag, Lovelight, Alligator, The Eleven, Caution, etc.!
Plus two sweet and tender bookends of the evening's show:
He Was A Friend Of Mine follows one of the best introductions ever and It's All Over Now, Baby Blue is my favorite version from the early days.
"You've been good people."
Five Skulls